Recent research found out that obesity triggered by Western-style diet might be a brain disorder. One of the key factors that control how much we want to eat is the feeling of hunger or full, and how well the brain can remember that feeling.
Australian researchers performed experiments on people eating Western-style diet (high in sugar and fat; low in vegetable, fruit, and fibre), as well as on people eating healthier diet. It was found out that those who habitually eat Western Diet were slower in learning and poorer in remembering than those who were on healthier diet. The Western Diet group also showed a bigger appetite for snacks even when they were full.
The findings were reported at the annual meeting of the Society for the Study of Ingestive Behaviour in Portugal. The result is in tune with experiments previously done on animals: Western Diet impaired memory inhibition ability in the brain area called hippocampus.
Normally, food-related memory should be at the forefront of our mind when we are hungry, and is inhibited when we are full. In other words, thoughts of food are set aside when we are full. But this process does not seem to work properly when people eat a high amount of fat and sugar.
Tuki Attuquayefio, a researcher from the Macquarie University stated, "Although they were full, they still craved for sweet and fatty food. What was even more interesting was the effect was strongly related to their ability to learn and the memory tasks, suggesting that there was a link between the two via the hippocampus."
Previous research found out that obese middle-aged adults had a higher risk of having Alzheimer's and other forms of dementia compared to those who had normal weight. A seven-year old child may experience memory impairment due to a diet high in fat and sugar.
Studies on mice have shown that a Western-style diet weakens the blood-brain barrier that helps to protect the brain from harmful substances in the bloodstream.
Text by Denistya Sagita
Stock photos from biomansoa.com
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